Interiors Update: A Porch Revamp

Floor tiles: Porcelain Floor Tiles in the “Abbey Whitby” Pattern, Tyne Tees Ceramics £141.00, Valspar paint from B & Q – shade is ‘Charcoal Sketch’: £9.00 (three sample pots), workman £100.00 (Fastiles found on checkatrade) 2 mats from Dunelm  £10.00 each.

Along with a lot of you this year we have been having a good old clear out, getting rid of all the junk accumulated over the years.  When we had some semblance of order, we realised we had “Interior blues”.  By this I mean certain areas of our home looked a little dated.  We wanted to fall in love with our home again!  So, we decided to slowly go through the rooms which needed an update, hopefully, this wasn’t going to cost a lot!  Which of course is never the case once the work begins.

We have lived in this pre-war house for over twenty-seven years the roof has been repaired many times, then over five years ago a lot of the tiles seemed to slide off all at the same time, so we renewed the whole roof of the porch and the glass panels, finishing it off with a new front door.  At the time, our boys were teenagers and there was an endless stream of muddy football boots and boisterous teenagers coming and going so we chose some low cost, hard wearing grey tiles which were not particularly pretty.

The porch is the first space that you see when entering someone’s home therefore we aimed to make it more welcoming and interesting. We found we were more excited about these Victorian tiles than the ones we have chosen for the kitchen.  We painted the walls the same colour as the grey tile that surrounds the patterned tile (see pic), We colour matched the grey using Valspar paint from B & Q – they mix the exact colour that you require.  Instead of buying a large pot, wasting most of it we bought 3 sample pots – this required two coats and with it being such a small area it did the job.

We are so pleased with the result.  It has given our very small porch an unexpected touch of elegance, that is now noticed.  The dark grey walls add a touch of drama and complement the tiles beautifully.  I love walking down the stairs on a morning and there they are in all their glory.  It’s the little things as they say.

The mats from Dunelm

I thought I would finish my post by mentioning the tradespeople we used for the job and where we found them.  If you’re practically minded or lucky enough to have a friend or family member who will help, then you are fortunate.

However, this isn’t always the case.  So where do you go for a reliable tradesperson who will be guaranteed to do the job well, swiftly and charge you a good rate which won’t break the bank?

Over the years, we’ve experienced both good and bad tradespeople, so you have to be careful who you hire for the job.

Now there are apps which can help you search for service providers for anything specific while seeing helpful reviews left by their customers – which I for one think is a great facility.  We have used Checkatrade twice in the past and have been satisfied both times.

Checkatrade is a site which operates as a directory which has vetted and recommended tradespeople.

We had a look, then decided to get three quotes for our tiling job.  I emailed three of the tilers listed which we liked the sound of.  At this stage, it was the kitchen floor only to be tiled as we hadn’t fallen in love with the porch tiles, yet.

The first tiler quoted over £600, which I have to say was quite a shock – much more than the tiles cost!  The second was more of a realistic £300.00.  We liked the reviews for this chap but he was unavailable for months to come.  The third was £200 for the kitchen floor – then, when we saw and fell in love with the porch tiles and an extra £100.00 was added – so £300.00 in total for both kitchen and porch.  We re-read the reviews on this third tiler and decided to go ahead.  The quote included the removal of the existing (slate) porch tiles – a job my husband didn’t fancy undertaking!!

The job took two days in total.   I must mention we did wonder at the diverse quotes we were given along the way.

Thank you for joining me on my latest blog post, today, and for reading my posts throughout the strangest of years that we continue to endure. I hope you have gained some inspiration and tips from it.  If you have any questions let me know in the comments.

I am taking a few weeks off from writing the blog to spend as much time as I can with my loved ones. But, I may put the odd post on Instagram (this is my only social media outlet).

I wish you and yours a very “Merry Christmas” and “All the Best” for 2021.  Thank you for reading my posts throughout this strange year we have all experienced and continue to live through.

Alison xxx

Please note that some of the above are affiliate links – if you like the look of one of the items and click through to the website, there is no extra cost to you.

 

 

26 Comments

  1. It’s beautiful! I love the victorian tile you have! It makes such a welcoming statement!

    • Thank you so much, Laura. I fell in love with them. You have a beautiful home. Merry Christmas to you. xx

  2. Wow Alison,
    I love the ceramic tiles! What a beautiful pattern and color. It really is a lovely touch to your entrance. I know when we got the floors done it changed the look so much!
    I love your dress, the print and color are so festive, and looks wonderful on you, you know I love your lace stockings!
    Have a Blessed Christmas!
    thank you for linking!
    jess xx
    http://www.elegantlydressedandstylish.com

    • Thank you, Jess. You’re so right it really has changed the entrance to our home so much. We do love these tiles. This is a Zara little dress I have had for quite a while, and these lace tights come out every year at this time. I hope you have had a lovely Christmas and Happy New Year to you! xx

  3. /

    Those tiles are gorgeous! They got perfectly in your house. I wish you a merry Christmas!

    • Thank you so much, Nancy. Hope you have had a lovely Christmas and Happy New Year to you. xx

  4. Alison, the finished entrance is absolutely gorgeous! I love the tiling work. And how fun is your outfit with those lacy tights! I love it! Thanks for linking with me, my friend. I hope you have a very Merry Christmas!

    Shelbee
    http://www.shelbeeontheedge.com

    • Thank you so much, Shelbee. So pleased you like the tiles, they have changed the entrance to our home so much. I hope you have had a lovely Christmas and Happy New Year to you. xx

    • Thank you so much, Emma. Hope you have had a lovely Christmas and Happy New Year to you. xx

  5. /

    Beautiful Alison. I love the dark against the vibrantly patterned tiles. I hope Christmas has been good to you xx

    • Thank you Laurie. We fell in love with these tiles straight away. We’re trying to get the motivation to start again. Terrible once you stop . Enjoy your weekend! x

  6. GISHAL5190
    /

    Thank you!!1

    • Thank you so much. We’re trying to get the motivation to begin again. Terrible once you stop.

  7. What a beautiful entryway! I have one project we hope to get done this year which is get a larger kitchen island that will fit our 4 boys comfortably. Quotes are always like that I have found! We usually try to work with someone recommended to us but it is not always possible.
    http://www.chezmireillefashiontravelmom.com

    • We’re looking for workmen again as we’re about to start once more with a few improvements. The ones we have spoken to so far haven’t worked out – so the search continues.

  8. Those tiles are SO GORGEOUS! Reminds me of some tiles I saw in Charleston when I was there a few years ago.

    Carrie
    curlycraftymom.com

    • We did fall in love straight away. They are very “Victorian” looking. They sound lovely the ones you saw in Charleston. x

  9. /

    I love those porch tiles – that’s exactly the type I want for our porch, as the house dates from the late 1920s. It’s something I’ve been putting off for ages so I’m more motivated now to get it sorted.

    • I did love these tiles on sight and they have given the porch a much needed booster. We are trying to find the motivation to start again – the break at Christmas has made us go into lazy mode I’m afraid. x

    • The new tiles have certainly improved the entrance to our home. It was worth the effort. xx

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